Indonesia aims to be Asian best in judo<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia will send eight judokas to South Korea
\nfor a six-year training program in its quest to become Asia's
\npowerhouse in the sport.<\/p>\n
Putu Denok, training director of the Indonesian Judo
\nAssociation, said after a hearing with the National Sports
\nCouncil yesterday that the eight athletes, comprising four males
\nand four females, would go to public schools while undergoing
\nintensive training sessions.<\/p>\n
Putu said that the ambitious program will start this year, but
\nrefused to disclose the names of selected athletes or the date of
\ntheir departure.<\/p>\n
"The focus of our project is grooming them for Asian-level
\ncompetitions by the year 2002," Putu said.<\/p>\n
Putu said that Indonesia has long been dubbed the judo
\npowerhouse in Southeast Asia, and now needs to improve its
\nperformance to an even more prestigious level.<\/p>\n
Indonesian judokas have always met their medal target in the
\nSoutheast Asian Games. They romped home with 10 gold medals in
\n1989 and 1991. In the last SEA Games, Indonesia grabbed nine
\nmedals, two more than their target.<\/p>\n
"We are going to maintain our performance in the SEA Games
\nhere next year," Putu said, adding that 65 percent of the
\nIndonesian judo team for the 1995 Games will form the national
\nteam for the 1997 Games. "They are still young and qualified for
\nthe event," he said.<\/p>\n
Putu said that Krisna Bayu and Aprilia Marzuki, who earned two
\ngold medals each, are strongly touted as the backbone of the
\nIndonesian SEA Games team next year.<\/p>\n
Putu said that the association will select additional judokas
\nduring the National Games this September. "We expect to recruit
\nnew faces from the National Games," he said.<\/p>\n
Speaking about Indonesia's participation in the upcoming
\nOlympic Games in Atlanta in July, Putu said that the association
\nhas asked for two wild cards from the International Olympic
\nCommittee for the country's young hopes, Krisna and Aprilia.<\/p>\n
Indonesia, sending a second string team, failed to win an
\nOlympic berth in the final qualifying round for the Olympic judo
\ncompetition in November last year. (05)<\/p>",
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